Miami-Dade School Students Stage Walkout to Protest Trump Immigration Plans

About 150 students in Miami-Dade County Public Schools walked out of their classrooms on Wednesday to protest anticipated immigration policies of the coming Trump administration.

They chanted, "Up, up with education. Down, down with deportation" and carried signs like "No human is illegal."

John Schuster of Miami-Dade County Public Schools told Patch that most of the students who participated from the district attend Homestead Senior High School, while a few attend nearby South Dade Senior High School.

Students reportedly also came from Miami-Dade College and other schools in the area, but it was not clear how many participated.

The walkout was reportedly organized by an organization called Cosecha, which is an advocacy group for undocumented immigrants.

"This was not sanctioned by the district," Schuster explained, noting that the protest will be treated as an unauthorized absence. "The Code of Student Conduct, which is the District’s policy that creates a safe learning environment to ensure academic success, will be utilized to address students for leaving school grounds without permission."

The student protest marks the latest wave of area protests against President-elect Donald Trump and his presumed policies on undocumented immigrants.

Over the weekend, several thousand protesters forced the closure of key thoroughfares around downtown Miami while a much smaller group took to the streets of Fort Lauderdale.

"Student freedom of expression is respected throughout the school district," Schuster told Patch. But school officials were also concerned that students would be marching along a dangerous route from their school to Homestead City Hall.

The second largest city in Miami-Dade County, Homestead represents a major agricultural area of South Florida. Such areas tend to attract undocumented immigrants.

"It's quite a distance. I think it's almost three miles from Homestead High on a road that doesn't have sidewalks," according to Schuster.

He said that the group that organized the protest did not obtain permission. Miami-Dade County is considered the fourth largest school district in the United States with some 356,480 students.

"We did have a good presence from local police as well as Miami-Dade School Police," he added.

Photo of earlier Miami protest by Paul Scicchitano